Up your gift wrap game with these unique hacks

Gift wrapping is something that does not come naturally to me. At all.

My mother is a whole other story. She was somehow gifted with the innate talent of knowing what looks amazing (in all things from interior decorating to tree trimming), and gift wrapping is one of her specialties. Forget Santa or his elves: The best workshop is right in my house.

Over the years I’ve picked up on what it takes to hack gift wrapping and create some beautiful, unique presents that look like they come right out of a Free People catalogue. But I know the struggle, so I wanted to pass on some of these hacks to you. Here are some of the best secrets for wrapping presents that are as fantastic as the gifts inside!

Think outside the bow

There are so many ways to decorate a gift besides just sticking a bow on it and calling it a night. As much as you want to. Believe me, I know. But you can do better.

Collect interesting stuff you find along the way, from costume jewelry pieces to vintage holiday cards, and use them as decorations on your presents. I promise it’s worth the bit of extra effort to make the gift go a long way in style.

Combine textures

From lace to flannel, there are a ton of different fabrics that you can mix and match to upgrade your wrapping. You don’t even need to do anything complicated: Just tie a piece of lace over your bow and the present will automatically look 10X more chic. Like fashion, gift wrapping is all about being eclectic. You never want to be too matchy-matchy, and the same goes for presents.

Personalize it with bling

My mom likes to find charms and letters that have our initials, instead of just putting tags on each gift. Every year, I can find my present by the letter on it. Tags are for basics. Don’t be a basic.

Pick up the paintbrush

This artsy wrapping paper is actually just regular butcher paper with white paint splattered onto it. For some reason butcher paper looks cool as wrapping paper, and there are a lot of ways you can jazz it up- stamps, drawings, whatever. Tie it all together with a brooch and you have an elegant effect.

There you have it: presents that show off your newfound amazing gift wrapping skills! Now all you have to do is put them under the tree.